Cifu
Motorsports
Revcon Motorhome

Revcon: the most
under appreciated motorhome ever made. It was the
forerunner to the GMC front-wheel drive motorhomes of the 1970s. Based
on the Oldsmobile Toronado of 1971-1978, the original 'flat nose'
version of the motorhome featured an aircraft grade, 6061 aluminum
body, bolted to a steel ladder chassis. In 1978, when General Motors
down-sized the big Toronado, Revcon changed to a Chevrolet 454 based
drivetrain of their own design. It too featured the same construction
but with a new, molded fiberglass nose section and wheel openings. It
was more
aerodynamic and stylish than the bus-like looks of the original 'flat
nose' series. A few of the last 1978 units featured the newer styling
with the original Toronado drivetrain.

To the right, you can see the original chassis. The elegance of it's
design is clearly visible here. The front wheel drivetrain is at the
bottom of the photo. In fact, there is half of an Oldsmobile Toronado
complete with
455 engine and Turbo Hydramatic 425 transmission, bolted to the bottom
of the ladder
frame. The torsion bars for the original Toronado front suspension are
visible extending
rearward from the drivetrain unit. Where you see that torsion bar
crossmember
is where the factory Toronado frame ends. From there, back, the rest of
the coach is effectively a trailer being dragged by the powertrain
unit. This
design allowed for an exceptionally low floor and accompanying center
of gravity. As a result, the Revcon 250 handled like no other coach of
its time.

When we acquired a particularly low-mile 1973, we were also fortunate
enough to get some beautifully preserved brochures and price lists.
Here
are some of the gems.. These files are large and were intended to
download and print. They were scanned, retouched where appropriate and
cropped to 7.5x10 inches, leaving the original 0.5" border around the
edges. The black and white images were generally printed on beige
colored paper. The background color was eliminated in these scans. If
you want authenticity, a textured, beige 'resume' paper would be your
best choice to match the original material. Unfortunately, the color
brochures were printed right to to the edges.
Since most people don't own 'full bleed' printers, they were scaled to
fit within a margined page.

1975

1978

Pre-1972 Test Mule Photos?

These photos were present in the 1972 Revcon brochure, however if you
study them closely, you'll notice that they feature items not seen in
regular production models.

This photo shows just a
portion of the dashboard. If you look at the later brochures or are
familiar with the early style dashboard, it is clear that this is not
the production dashboard used from 1971-on. That makes sense because
the original coaches were based on the earlier series Oldsmobile
Toronado. The Toronado speedometer and dash switches used in the
production Revcons were not in GM production until the 1971 model year.
It is not known how many of those very early coaches were built or
where they are. The oldest Revcons generally found are 1971 or later.

This photo shows the
original galley area present in all of the early 250D models. The
difference? There is no pass-through between the galley and the bedroom
(the wood-grained panel in the background). In production coaches, this
featured a rounded-oval cutout and a privacy curtain that could be
closed when desired. It also lacks the production roof air unit
normally installed between the galley and bedroom.

If you study the 1972 and 1973 brochures, you will also notice other
minor differences like the wiper blades running together in 1973 but
swinging opposite one-another in the 1972 brochure. After study of the
wipers on known-prodction 1971 coaches, the coach shown in the 1972
brochure is believed to be one of the earlier test mules (earlier than
1971).

General 250D and 250DT Pictures

The 250D model was the first Revcon floorplan and featured a 'full'
rear bed. The 250DT model differed in that it traded the 'full' bed, a
wardrobe and dresser for twin beds in the rear of the coach. These
photos were present in the brochures above but warranted enlargement.
The '250' designation meant 25 feet. There was also a '220' model (22
foot). Considering that the Toronado measured 19 feet, it's hard to
imagine an entire motorhome built in just three more feet. Similarly,
the Toronado claimed a dry weight of 5,200 pounds, while the 250D
weighed in at 7,666. The lightweight construction methods
obviously paid off.

1972 Galley: A great shot of
the original Revcon 250DT interior (the optional twin bed is visible in
the bedroom). This
one is from a 1973 brochure, though the coach is a 1972 as evidenced by
the following photo. Notice the green shag 'Acrilon' carpet in the
photo.

1972 Swivel Bucket Seats: Another
great shot of the 1972 250D, this
time looking forward. The 1973 models featured ducted dash air
conditioning,
though this one shows the original underdash air conditioner. In most
coaches, there was an additional table socket in the floor
between the two front seats. This allowed the installation of an
optional 'cocktail table', making the front seats into another dining
and seating area. In later years, the Revcon grew in length to
eventually include a lounge area behind the front seats. The additional
seating did away with the need for a cocktail table.

Engineering Line Drawing of
the general layout of the coach: This
is page three of the 1973 foldout brochure. It features a great cross
sectional view of the coach showing the ingenious packaging and the
very low stance.

Other Revcon Web sites

Tom Parsons has
a great website featuring a write-up of the company history,
pictures of his personal 1974 250 coach, a fuel injection conversion
and even more brochures and articles.

This is the original Revcon
club, the Revconeers: a Family Motor Coach organization. They have
been around for many years, though their presence is more newsletter
based than Internet based. Nonetheless, there are some great resources
to be found there.